SEE
KOREAN: Since 1967, Korea has had a film quota that requires
local theaters to screen Korean films at least 146 days a year.
The local film industry has been doing well, so now the government
wants to drastically reduce the quota. Filmmakers are protesting.Korea Herald 02/01/02

BBC
RADIO AT RECORD LISTENERSHIP: BBC Radio listenership is up,
beating out all commercial radio stations. "The number of
people listening to BBC Radio each week has risen by 300,000 since
September, taking the total to 32.7 million - a record since new
monitoring methods were introduced in 1999."BBC 02/01/02

Thursday January
31

POOH
FIGHT: Disney has helped turn Winnie the Pooh into a merchandising
juggernaut. But the family of the literary agent who "bought
the rights to Pooh from author AA Milne in 1929, have filed a
suit to terminate Disney's licence and to claim damages for 'hundreds
of millions' of dollars."The
Guardian (UK) 01/30/02

THE
BATTLE FOR WNYC: When New York public radio station WNYC lost
its FM tower on the World Trade Center, its classical music programming
got compressed to late night hours on its sister AM band. Now
that FM is up and broadcasting again, the classical music hasn't
expanded to its former proportions again. Changes at the station
signal a rift between WNYC's ambitious corporate-style managers
and more traditional staff. New York
Observer 01/30/02

Wednesday January
30

LACK
OF DIVERSITY: A new report chides the television industry
once again for its white-maleness. "The report, which examined
the 40 most popular series of the 2000-2001 season, reported that
about 80% of drama and comedy episodes—or 663 of the 826 installments—were
directed by white males. Black males directed 27 episodes, or
about 3% of the total, while Latino males directed 15 episodes,
or about 2%. Asian American males directed nine episodes. White
females directed 87—or 11%—of the episodes." Los
Angeles Times 01/30/02

ARGENTINA
- THE FUTURE IN FILM: Could anyone have predicted the collapse
of Argentina? Bankers maybe. Also filmmakers: "The 1990s were
a very false period. There was a lot of money around in a country
that wasn't growing. This feeling of menace that was coming was
very clear many years ago. All these films are of course related
to the situation." The Guardian (UK)
01/30/02

VOTING
WITH YOUR FEET: The ultimate, definitive criticism of a movie
is simple and direct, and it's available to anyone. Get up and
walk out; if it's really bad, demand your money back. People do
it all the time. Well, some of the time. "The movie doesn't
even have to be a bomb. The films people leave the most are frequently
also the most admired."Los
Angeles Times 01/30/02

Tuesday January
29

BAFTA
NOMINEES: The British Bafta Award nominations are out. Nominated
for best fim are: The Lord Of The Rings and Moulin Rouge
(each picked up 12 nominations), the French-language hit Amelie,
A Beautiful Mind, the animated adventure Shrek.
Winners are announced Feruary 24. BBC
01/29/02

HOW
TO WIN AN OSCAR: "It is Oscar season, when the great
and the good of California's Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences gather, ponder the relative merits of the year's best
actors and films, and finally, amid great fanfare and weird interpretative
dance numbers, give the Oscar to someone else." So, if making
a great film doesn't get it done, what rules must be followed
to take home the little gold man? Hmmm, where to begin? National
Post (Daily Telegraph) 01/28/02

Monday January 28

HARD
STUFF/HARD DECISIONS: "Last month, NBC began accepting
ads for Smirnoff vodka, marking the first time such ads are appearing
on broadcast networks since the programmers adopted a voluntary
ban on the products shortly after the Second World War. Almost
immediately after NBC's announcement, an avalanche of attacks
came crashing down onto NBC's peacock tail, sending the billion-dollar
network into a fetal position." But the policy about hard
liquor ads and TV is deeply conflicted... The
Globe & Mail (Canada) 01/28/02

Sunday January 27

DANGEROUS
TO BE SO BIG? Clear Channel Communications now has its fingers
in more and more of the average American's entertainment choices.
The company "garnered relatively little attention as it evolved
during the 1990s from a family owned San Antonio radio chain into
an international conglomerate that is now the size of NBC. Today
it is the nation's largest radio owner, and a world leader in
outdoor advertising. And it is the largest promoter and presenter
of live entertainment on the planet; CCE promotes and/or produces
26,000 events a year, drawing 62 million people to its 135 theaters,
arenas, and amphitheaters around the globe, the company says."
Boston Globe 01/27/02

THE
OSCAR SECRETS: Want to win an Oscar? Here's how: "We
all know that the Oscars bear scant relation to the merits of
the films in question. So what do they bear relation to? In order
to answer this question, we processed the winners and losers of
the past 20 years into a computer and asked it to come up with
a set of rules as to how you win an Oscar." Some hints -
it helps to be disabled and have a rousing end to your film. The
Telegraph (UK) 01/26/02

Friday January 25

PRODUCE
THIS: Movies and TV shows seem to be overrun with various
types of 'producers' in some form or another. "Who are these people?
What do they do? Do they get paid? Why do they need so many of
them? These are legitimate questions. For while there are thousands
of people roaming the streets of Los Angeles claiming to be producers,
it takes more than a business card and an ugly sports jacket to
truly merit the title. Moreover, even real producers carry less
weight now that a few giant companies have swallowed Hollywood."Los Angeles Times 01/24/02

THE
SAD SACKS AT THE GOLDEN GLOBES: Why does anyone care about
the Golden Globe Awards. They're voted by the foreign press -
"which is comprised of 80 journalists about whom movie folk
could not care less during the other 11 months of the year. I
have lived in Hollywood; I have seen the foreign press, and a
more motley consortium of lumpy, hard-boiled, cocktail-happy flacks
you could never meet. Agents, publicists and stars, do their best
to avoid them (except during awards season), meeting them only
in strictly supervised round-table interviews, chuckling behind
their backs at their softball questions." The
Globe & Mail (Canada) 01/25/02

TALK ABOUT REALITY:
A Russian "reality TV" program shows a dozen young men
and women living together in a single apartment. Cameras record
their every action, and one-way mirrors let passers-by in the
street watch as well. And it continues, regardless of the fact
that the channel which used to broadcast it has been shut down.Moscow Times 01/24/02

Thursday January
24

MINORITY
RECRUITING: Two years ago the major American TV networks came
under fire for their lack of minority actors on programs. Now
the networks are hosting "talent workshops" in an effort
to recruit more minority actors. Critics say it's about time:
"We expect to see real change in the new shows, or else we're
going to have a real problem. The new shows will be announced
in May, and we see it as a make or break time for the networks."
Toronto Star 01/23/02

Wednesday January
23

AMÉLIE
OVERTAKES LA CAGE: "Amélie, the little
French movie that could, has broken a longstanding record to become
the highest-grossing French-language film to be released in the
United States. Director Jean-Pierre Jeunet's whimsical tale has
grossed $20.9 million, breaking the previous record, $20.4 million,
held by La Cage Aux Folles since 1979. Last week Amélie
crossed the $100 million mark for worldwide box-office receipts."New York Post 01/23/02

BRITISH
FILM INDUSTRY SAGS: According to the British Film Commission,
"British film production dropped sharply in 2001, largely
because of the threat of a strike by members of the U.S. film
actors' union; overall Britain's film industry was worth about
$602-million last year, compared with $1.1-billion in 2000."The Globe &
Mail (Canada) 01/22/02

AUSSIE
ASSAULT: With Australian movie folk cleaning up awards at
the Golden Globes this week, "the Aussie assault was the
main topic of conversation at the Globes' after parties and on
entertainment shows this morning."The
Age (Melbourne) 01/23/02

AUSSIE
HOTBED: Everyone's talking about the film talent coming
from Down Under right now. Says Steven Spielberg: "Australia
has produced the most amazing new wave of talent since, probably,
Britain in the 1940s."The
Age (Melbourne) 01/23/02

MORE
THAN EVER, ART IS GROUNDED IN SCIENCE: "Increasingly,
science, math and technology have emerged as serious themes in
creative endeavors such as the current film A Beautiful Mind,
recent plays such as Proof, Copenhagen, Arcadia and Q.E.D.,
the novels of writers Richard Powers and Andrea Barrett, and the
visual artwork of Eduardo Kac. You cannot hope to understand contemporary
life without a hard look at the ways that science and technology
have overhauled every aspect of material existence."Chicago Tribune 01/20/02

THE
BBC AND ARTS: The BBC has come under fire recently for its
arts programming. Some charge the corporation is lessening its
commitment to the arts and plans to "ghettoize" the
arts on the BBC's new digital service. But BBC head Greg Dyke
denies the charges: "Arts programmes would continue to take
up a minimum of 230 hours a year across BBC One and BBC Two, he
said, instead of being shifted to new digital channel BBC Four
when it launches in March."BBC
01/23/02

SIGNAL
TO NOISE: Has the BBC been reducing the quality of its digital
audio bitrate signal? The music hasn't been as crisp... Gramophone
01/23/02

Tuesday January
22

NOT
MUCH OF A STRIKE, THEN, IS IT? The UK film industry is reeling
from the effects of an actors' strike that has been going on since
December. Or is it? Despite calls for British actors to refuse
all work until a settlement is reached, the union has allowed
some studios to cross the picket line and sign individual deals
with stars so current big-budget Hollywood productions are not
halted. BBC 01/22/02

RECORD
YEAR FOR AUSTRALIAN MOVIES: The Australian movie business
did well last year. "Australian box office takings leapt
to a record $812 million from $689.5 million in 2000. However,
the news for locally made films was not entirely positive, with
their market share slipping marginally from 7.9 to 7.8 per cent
in 2001." Sydney Morning Herald
01/22/02

Monday January 21

MOULIN
ROUGE/BEAUTIFUL MIND
BIG WINNERS AT GLOBES: Golden Globes, as chosen by the Hollywood
foreign press, are given out. Best movies awards go to A Beautiful
Mind and Moulin Rouge, which can be considered front-runners
for the Academy Awards.Los
Angeles Times 01/21/02

COMING
OUT PARTY: For many, the frivolity seemed to mark a psychic
turning point for the industry. Hollywood was not only buffeted
by the terrorist attacks, but also a slowdown in production
due in part to a flood of activity in the first part of 2001
spurred by the threat of strikes. "The Hollywood movie business
was completely stalled out for very good reason after 9/11.
Now that there's becoming enough distance between that tragic
event and today, people are feeling very eager to work. Los
Angeles Times 01/21/02

TEDIOUS
EXERCISE: The "59th Annual Golden Globe Awards, which anointed
Ron Howard's A Beautiful Mind as the flick to beat at
the Oscars in March, was about as tedious as the longest Academy
Award show. Ever."Atlanta
Journal-Constitution 01/21/02

SUNDANCE
FINISHES STRONG: Expectations were definitely not high for
this year's Sundance Festival. But then, "the dark and innovative
films that made up much of this year's roster began to create
a stir, and suddenly the odor of infirmity drifted away. Movies
were selling left and right last week for more money than anyone
would have predicted before the festival began on Jan. 10."
The New York Times 01/21/02

THE
MOST-HATED FILM AT SUNDANCE: Director Gus Van Sant used
to be an art-film director. Then, after a breakout hit, he wasn't.
At this year's Sundance he was back in high-art form again.
"His feature Gerry may be one of the most hated
movies in American film-festival history."The Globe & Mail (Canada)
01/21/02

Sunday January 20

AND
THE WINNER IS... "Personal Velocity, a movie trilogy
about three women confronted with momentous life crises, won the
Sundance Film Festival's grand jury prize Saturday, taking top
dramatic honors at the 11-day independent cinema showcase. Sundance
jurors gave the documentary grand jury prize to Daughter From
Danang, which follows an Amerasian child of a Vietnamese woman
and U.S. soldier who searches for her natural mother years after
she was adopted by an American woman." Nando
Times (AP) 01/19/02

SUNDANCE
DOOR OPENS A LITTLE WIDER: The Sundance Film Festival is
arguably the most successful showcase of independent film in
the U.S. But for an event that purports to give voice to those
normally shunned by major studios, Sundance has a fairly spotty
record when it comes to screeing films by racial minorities.
This year, however, the tide may be turning. Washington
Post 01/19/02

LET'S
HEAR IT FOR VOLTRON! "Japanese film has probably never
been as popular internationally as it is right now. Its popularity,
though, is not grounded in live action films, but in the animated
features and television series that have come to be known as anime.
It has been estimated that anime now account for 60 percent of
Japanese film production." The
New York Times 01/20/02 (one-time
registration required for access)

Friday January 18

THE
GLORIES OF NEPOTISM: How do you get a job of have a movie
made in Hollywood? You gotta know someone. "In fact, Hollywood
happens to be one of the more democratic places to make it, so
eager are they for the next big thing, so willing to believe that
you could be It, or you, or you. It's standard practice in L.A.
that no phone call goes unreturned (even if it means rolling calls,
deliberately returning them when they know you'll be out), because
everybody could end up working with anybody at any time."The Globe & Mail (Canada)
01/18/02

Thursday January
17

GOING
TO PRAGUE: Where are all the movies going? To Prague. "A
multi-million-dollar film industry has made Prague, the Czech
capital, a European moviemaking mecca, second only to London.
Since the fall of communism 11 years ago, hundreds of foreign
productions have come here to take advantage of its extraordinarily
low costs, highly skilled technicians, and stunning locations."Christian Science Monitor 01/16/02

Wednesday January
16

THE
DECLINE OF DISNEY? "After a renaissance in the mid-80s
and for much of the 90s, Disney has been sliding. Its movie business
is scoring fewer hits, attendance at theme parks has been disappointing
of late. The company had its fingers severely burnt online and
was forced to close an ambitious internet portal early last year
and dissolved what was a separate new-media division."The Guardian (UK) 01/15/02

Tuesday January
15

CLAIMS
FOR FLOP INSURANCE: Banks financing Hollywood movies are going
to court to try to collect on insurance claims worth more than
$1 billion for movies that were flops. "Hundreds of cases
are stacked up on both sides of the Atlantic, as London's insurance
market resists paying out on a slew of cinematic turkeys. Banks
had lent money for productions with "shortfall insurance"
- "policies that pay up if a film fails to make its projected
revenue within (typically) two to three years."Financial Times 01/14/02

CLOUDS
AT SUNDANCE: The Sundance Festival is in full bloom, and there's
lots of good fare. But "the combination of several factors
has shaped feelings about the festival beyond this. There is the
important anniversary for an event that has visibly altered the
shape of filmmaking, and there is the residue of the slumping
economy. Though Main Street was a scramble of visitors dashing
from one party to the next, as it was last year, a bit of a cloud
hangs over the festival."The
New York Times 01/15/02

A
SERIOUS FOCUS: The opening festivities at Sundance this
year have been dominated by films with extremely sober subjects.
One focuses on the murder of Matthew Shephard, beaten to death
in Wyoming because he was gay. Another, a documentary, examines
the brutal dragging death of James Byrd in Jasper, Texas. Throw
in a dark comedy about a sorority girl in love with a handicapped
discus-thrower, and the festival is looking awfully edgy, even
for independent film. Dallas Morning
News 01/15/02 (one-time registration
required for access)

SCORE
ONE FOR THE CLASSICS: Okay, so country music may not exactly
be Mozart. But in Nashville, and indeed across much of America,
country is as classic as it gets, and "regular folks"
are as loyal to it as opera fans. So when a legendary Nashville
AM station (flagship of the Grand Ole Opry) announced it
would be moving to a talk format, the listeners revolted. None
of this, of course, is unusual in an age of huge broadcasting
conglomerates. What is unusual is that the effort worked, and
WSM will stay country, and stay unique in a sea of generic radio
blather. Nashville Tennessean 01/15/02

RIPPING
OFF EGYPTIAN MOVIES: Video piracy isn't only a problem for
American movies. Egyptian filmmakers estimate they lose $15 million
in revenues a year due to video pirates. "Pirates manage
to get a copy of a movie as soon as it is released, either on
video cassette (mostly from Saudi Arabia) or on imported laser
discs, sometimes recording them from the cinemas directly using
a camcorder. These are then duplicated and distributed to the
2,000-odd video rental stores and clubs that specialize in selling
pirated cassettes." Middle East
Times 01/11/02

INDEPENDENT
FROM WHAT, EXACTLY? "Independent film companies Intermedia
and Spyglass Entertainment Group on Monday announced a merger
agreement that will form one of the world's largest independent
film companies. The merger is expected to be completed by the
end of February." Dallas Morning
News (AP) 01/15/02(one-time
registration required for access)

Monday January 14

TAX
BREAKS FOR HOLLYWOOD: California governor Gray Davis proposes
tax breaks for movie companies shooting their productions in California.
"Hollywood's unions have pushed for years for state and federal
incentives to fight runaway production. Canada's weak dollar,
combined with government incentives, make shooting there about
25% cheaper. Roughly one in four U.S.-developed productions shoot
in foreign countries, mostly Canada.Los
Angeles Times 01/13/02

Sunday January 13

THE
RE/SELF-EDITED MOVIE: Fans are editing commercial movies on
their own computers. A new artform, as some claim? Nope. "Digital
technology may make it easier to appropriate and reinterpret existing
art. But the tendency itself, the urge to do so, is a psychologically
crucial element of contemporary thinking, and has more to do with
zeitgeist than with technology. Quite simply, reappropriation
is what we do these days, in high art and mass media: It's part
of postmodernity." The Globe
& Mail (Canada) 01/12/02

GETTING
TO THE THEATRE ON TIME: It has a script, then it doesn't have
a script. It has a $20 million budget, then it has a $6 million
budget... how do movies ever get made? Here's the chronicle of
one movie-making experience.The
Guardian (UK) 01/12/02

Friday January 11

DIGITAL
IS YESTERDAY'S NEWS: The past two years, "digital"
was the word at the Sundance Festival. "But the 2002 Sundance
Film Festival, which opens here Thursday, looks to be relatively
free of new-tech buzz. Press releases trumpeting the latest digital
video innovations - a fax-jamming feature of Sundances past -
have slowed to a trickle, and the Sundance press office seems
to be barely keeping track of which films are digital and which
aren't."Wired
01/10/02

PLAY
ME AGAIN SAM: Now there's no need for old actors to die on
screen when they die in real life - they can just be digitized
and live forever. The practice is growing in movies and in TV
commercials. "With technology being where it is, hearse-loads
of dead people could get in on the act. Computer graphics imaging
(CGI) can create very convincing replicas of specific human beings.
At the same time speech generation software replicates voices
so successfully that to our merely human ears the sound is an
exact duplicate."Sydney
Morning Herald 01/11/02

UNFRIENDLY?
A Canadian conservation officer shut down an expensive film shoot
in the Canadian Rockies for an American TV commercial this week
because the crew didn't have a required $57 permit. The incident
has become very public and critics are charging that the government
isn't being helpful enough in helping American productions that
want to film in Canada. "It's just bad public relations. It's
an embarrassment to the Alberta tourism and film industry."National Post 01/11/02

Thursday January
10

BACKING
AWAY FROM THE FAMILY: Family-friendly programs been a centerpiece
of TV programming since day one. But no more, at least not at
NBC. "We don't see them as really the kinds of shows that
are in our wheelhouse," says the network's west coast president.
As for those successful family shows on Fox and ABC, "They
don't have the upscale demos that we want that would allow us
to keep them on the air."Nando Times 01/09/02

Wednesday January
9

SAGGING
SPIRITS: "Hollywood's actors union, The Screen Actors
Guild (SAG) has announced plans to re-run its hotly disputed presidential
contest. Former Little House on the Prairie star Melissa
Gilbert was elected president last November by a large majority
over rival actress Valerie Harper, who starred in Rhoda.
However it has since emerged that the vote violated the union's
constitution." BBC 01/09/02

Tuesday January
8

BUILDING
A CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE: The Canadian government wants to
invest in the "construction of a Canadian cultural infrastructure
on the web." But how to build it? "This is the medium
that will be the chief means to reach people now in the 13-17
age group." One group of multimedia artists thinks they have
the answer. Toronto Star 01/07/02

JUST
WHAT THE WORLD NEEDS: "Leni Riefenstahl, who produced
masterful propaganda films for the Nazis, plans her first movie
release in nearly 50 years to coincide with her 100th birthday
this summer. Impressions Under Water, a 45-minute film about the
underwater world of the Indian Ocean, is the result of dives between
1974 and 2000, Riefenstahl told Germany's Die Welt newspaper
in a rare interview." Toronto
Star (AP) 01/08/02

Monday January 7

DVD'S
ARE HOT: "The number of films sold on DVD more than doubled
last year, to more than 37 million, according to industry figures.
Almost 2.4 million DVD players were also bought in the past year,
550,000 of them in the run-up to Christmas, the British Video
Association (BVA) says." BBC
01/06/02

DIGITAL
RADIO: Will people pay for radio? Apparently: Digital radio
is hot. "Since its national debut in mid- November, XM Satellite
Radio has sold 25,000 to 30,000 subscriptions to its new national
radio service, XM Radio. In the same period, consumer electronics
stores sold nearly an equal number of the specialized radios necessary
to receive the signals, making national satellite radio one of
the fastest-growing new products the audio industry has seen in
years." The New York Times 01/07/02

BEST
FILM OF 2001: The National Society of Film Critics voted Mulholland
Drive as the best movie of 2001. "Robert Altman's satirical
Gosford Park came in second as best picture, while the
fantasy hit The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
was third."Nando
Times (AP) 01/06/02

SELF-CENSORSHIP
IN SPADES: Don't like a scene in a movie you'd like to watch
at home? Three companies in Utah "have developed technology
that allows DVDs to be manipulated and cleaned up." You can
edit out that offensive sex scene or clean up the violence. "Wouldn't
it have been easier, perhaps, to skip the movie? Why not say to
young Jimmy, 'Son, The Matrix is too violent. We're not
going to buy that DVD for you. But here, have this Lassie movie
instead. Now, let's go get some hot cocoa." San
Francisco Chronicle 01/06/02

THE
VALUES THING: The White House is encouraging filmmakers to
make movies with "American values." But "what would
a film bursting with 'American values' actually look like? Probably
what the president and his advisors had in mind are films that
celebrate patriotism or wholesome attributes such as family togetherness,
self-sacrifice and courage under fire. But are any of these upright
virtues inherently American?"Los
Angeles Times 01/06/02

FEEDING
ON ITSELF: The FBI's famous internet surveillance program
has become inspiration for a group of new-media artists. "In
a collaborative art project called, creatively enough, Carnivore,
Flash guru Joshua Davis and digital artist Mark Napier, along
with other artists, have crafted programs that create audiovisual
representations of data traffic that’s observed and hijacked from
a local area network." Wired
01/06/02

Sunday January 6

RINGS
PICKS UP FIRST AWARDS: The American Film Institute kicks
off the awards season by naming the best of the big and
little screens Saturday night. AFI decides Lord of the
Rings is the best movie of 2001. Chicago
Sun-Times 01/06/02

WHAT
WAS THE YEAR'S BEST MOVIE? There seems to be no
consensus "best movie" of the year among American
film critics. Here's a list of critics' Top 10 lists
for 2001. Chicago Tribune
01/06/02

SUNDANCE
TURNS 20: "Sundance used to be shorthand for artistic
legitimacy, a way for filmmakers to place themselves firmly outside
the corrupt commercial imperatives of the studio system. Then
the studios jumped atop the bandwagon. As the Sundance Institute
celebrates its 20th anniversary with the start of its annual film
festival on Thursday, organizers are grappling with how to maintain
the fest's indie appeal and credibility, while accepting the fact
that the 10-day event has been co-opted by many of the major studios
as just another way to grab attention for a movie." The
Globe & Mail (Canada) 01/05/02

THE
CAMERA LIES: When Michael Jackson appeared on a TV special
last fall, producers thought he looked too white compared to his
brothers, so they "color corrected" him on the screen.
Then they thought Whitney Houston looked too skinny, so they added
a little weight to her in post-production. "Over the past
two decades, the advent of digital technology and the increasing
sophistication of CGI (computer graphics interface) software has
radically transformed production of everything from feature films
and television shows to music videos and advertising spots. Now,
virtually anything is possible. 'If you can think it or dream
it, you can do it'." The Globe &
Mail (Canada) 01/05/02

Friday January 4

SAVE
OUR SHOWS: A lifeguard frustrated that TV networks canceled
some of his favorite shows has started a website (www.SaveThatShow.com)
to allow viewers to vote for retaining their favorites. "The
site allows viewers to voice their opinions about their favourite
shows, before they're yanked off the air, by using an on-line
form. The poll results and suggestions for change are also sent
to network executives by e-mail on a monthly basis (although he
has yet to hear back from anyone)." Toronto
Star 01/04/02

Thursday January
3

REVISIONISTS
UNDER ATTACK: "The real Mao Tse-tung hounded critics
to death. But in the latest version of history according to China's
state film industry, Mao treasures free speech and criticism of
his regime." Like most state films featuring such blatant
revisionist history, the movie bombed in China. But the widow
of an American journalist portrayed in the film is furious over
the inaccuracies, and is creating quite a stir. Cleveland
Plain Dealer (AP) 01/03/02

GETTING
BACK TO WORK: "Afghan filmmakers are shooting their first
movie in 10 years following the fall of the Taleban regime. The
film, The Speculator, is being specially made for screening on
Afghan television because the station is short of material."BBC 01/03/02

Wednesday January
2

RECORD
MOVIE YEAR: The movie industry ended 2001 with its best year
ever. "Movie-ticket sales for 2001 will total an estimated
$8.35 billion by the end of New Year's Eve, up from last year's
record of $7.7 billion, according to box-office tracker Exhibitor
Relations. Factoring in an estimated 4 percent rise in average
ticket prices, admissions were up about 5 percent, the first increase
since 1998." Nando Times (AP)
01/01/02

THE
END OF CLASSICAL RADIO: When Miami classical radio station
WTMI was sold last year for $100 million, it was inevitable the
classical format was doomed, no matter what the new owners said.
Classical can't hope to produce the kind of revenues a $100 million
purchase demands. Sure enough, this week the station abandoned
classical for dance music. Miami Herald
01/01/02

BALKING
AT THE BONUSES: Fans of DVD's have been attracted to the new
format in part because of "bonus" material often included
on the discs - interviews with cast and crew, and behind-the-scenes
scenes. But the "extra material could start to disappear
thanks to escalating costs and demands by talent and guilds. Studios
are balking at new fees for script use and star participation,
even as overall DVD sales surge and consumers embrace "special
edition" packages."Toronto
Star 01/01/02

UNDERSTANDING
NIELSEN: The Nielsen Company has a new leader. In the US,
"from a commercial and perhaps even cultural perspective,
few enterprises may be more influential, and less understood,
than Nielsen, which provides the television ratings that networks
and media buyers rely upon to negotiate advertising rates. Beyond
governing more than $50 billion in annual spending on TV ads,
the information serves as a cultural touchstone, a tool people
use to gauge the prevailing public mood and tastes." Los
Angeles Times 01/02/02

BBC
SURGES: For the first time, the BBC1 TV channel has scored
higher ratings for the year than chief competitior ITV1. "Ratings
show BBC One with an audience share of 26.8% compared to 26.7%
for ITV1." BBC 01/01/02